Four intensive field observation periods between 1986 and 1992 collected coordinated satellite, airborne, and surface data on cirrus and marine stratocumulus clouds. The dataset was produced by the NASA Langley Research Center Atmospheric Science Data Center (LARC_ASDC) as part of the First ISCCP Regional Experiments. Its primary goal was to improve cloud and radiation parameterizations used in general circulation models.
Use Cases
- Analyze cloud base height time-series from the Valdivia ceilometer to characterize marine stratocumulus vertical structure during the ASTEX campaign.
- Correlate cloud layer data with satellite observations from the ISCCP to validate satellite-derived cloud property retrievals.
- Use surface-based cloud observations to initialize or evaluate high-resolution modeling studies of cloud system evolution.
- Investigate the relationship between cloud macrophysical properties and radiative fluxes using coordinated surface and airborne measurements.
Strengths
- Data collection coordinated across satellite, airborne, and surface platforms for four distinct field campaigns.
- Focuses on two critical cloud types (cirrus and marine stratocumulus) for climate modeling.
- Designed specifically to bridge the gap between high-resolution cloud data and GCM parameterizations.
Limitations
- Dataset is temporally stale, with the last update recorded in June 1992.
- Specific data volume, row count, and column details are unknown, limiting immediate assessment of scope.
- Geographic coverage is limited to specific IFO regions (e.g., eastern North Atlantic, southwestern U.S. coast).
Provenance
- Source
- NASA Langley Research Center Atmospheric Science Data Center (LARC_ASDC).
- Collection Method
- Collected via coordinated surface (ceilometer), airborne, and satellite observations during intensive field campaigns.
- Time Range
- Field campaigns occurred in 1986, 1987, 1991, and 1992, with the ASTEX campaign in June 1992.
- Freshness
- null
- Geography
- Includes the eastern North Atlantic Ocean (ASTEX), southeastern Kansas, southwestern coast of California, and other IFO sites.